The national unemployment rate, which peaked at 14.8% in April 2020, steadily dropped to a post-pandemic low of 5.2% in August, as vaccinations, business reopenings and pent-up consumer demand fueled a more robust recovery than many economists projected. It is not yet known if the delta variant will derail the recovery, but the abrupt end of the expanded federal unemployment benefits will put millions of people “in harm’s way,” Stettner said.
